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The IEE was established as an important new research centre in 1966, only four years after the founding of the RUB. From the outset, research at the IEE has been characterized by an interdisciplinary approach to the study of economic, political, and socio-cultural development in the countries of the South. In its early years, the IEE was primarily a research institute and had a particular focus on the Islamic world.

Political Change Calls for New Research

The wave of political transformations in Africa and Central Asia in the early 1990s created new challenges for development research. Against this backdrop, the IEE expanded its activities and research agenda. The fellows of the institute have a very strong focus on the study of actual economic, political, and social transformation processes. Of particular importance is the interdisciplinary analysis of economic reforms and poverty reduction, democratisation, decentralization, crisis prevention, and human rights and the rule of law.

These changes have also brought an expansion of the regional focus of the institute. In addition to its specialization on the Islamic world it has now become a centre for research on Southern Africa. In 2000 the IEE completed a three-year interdisciplinary research project concerned with the potential of change and transformation in Southern Africa. This Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft sponsored project concentrated on the interdependence of economic reforms, democratisation, and human and minority rights in the region. Fifteen doctoral dissertations dealing with various aspects of system transformation in Africa have been undertaken within the scope of this project.

Political, economic, social, and legal changes are interdependent processes. The different patterns of systemic change in different parts of the world calls not only for interdisciplinary and comparative research, but research that has an international perspective. The IEE achieves interdisciplinarity and internationalisation by designing innovative programmes of study. To reach out into new subject areas and new regions the IEE works through international networks and has a pronounced emphasis on the practice of international cooperation.

Interdisciplinarity

The interdisciplinarity of the IEE has created a vibrant culture of debate and intellectual exchange. Interdisciplinarity means the exposure to different perspectives and disciplines. IEE research projects are always pushing the edge of trditional disciplinary boundaries and can come to grips with the complexities of the economic, political, and socio-economic interdependencies in a much more fruitful manner than more traditional approaches.

The interdisciplinarity of IEE research makes it especially suitable for the practice of international development cooperation. It is frequently the case that interdisciplinary research results are more appropriate to answer the practical question of which reform strategies should be followed in the transformation of economic, political and legal systems.

Internationality

Research at the IEE is international in two ways. It follows the latest international research developments and debates and stresses the importance of fieldwork in developing countries.

• Since 1995 staff at the IEE have undertaken over 45 research projects in 5 regions and 25 countries.
• More than 80% of the projects were financed by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
• 20 of the projects (nearly half of the total) specialized on Sub-Saharan Africa, 8 focused on North Africa and the Near and Middle East, and the remainder were on the countries in Central, South, and Southeast Asia.

The international face of IEE can be seen in the participation of IEE researchers at international conferences and as evaluators and consultants for international development agencies. The IEE is also a frequent host to international conferences and workshops as well as being the home to over 20 visiting fellows in the past five years.

Practical Relevance and Innovativeness

The IEE undertakes research on the development policy programmes and projects that are essential for system transformation. The research is therefore inseparable from contemporary trends in policy-making and this stimulates new questions and research needs. This practical orientation of the IEE opens up new professional opportunities in development cooperation for the members of the institute and students of its programmes. Accordingly, the IEE has all kinds of contacts with the world of international development cooperation. Of particular importance is that two professors of the institute belong to the advisory board of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

• Research at the IEE is driven by its emphasis on practical relevance and networking. The institute , is therefore, able to react quickly to changes in international development policy.
• The innovative cut of research at the IEE is its dual focus on change at the micro and macro level of economic, political, and socio-cultural systems as well as its study of crisis prevention and management and poverty reduction and structural adjustment.
• The innovative aspect of research at the IEE is that all research projects follow the cycle of theory - hypothesis - fieldwork - evaluation. In particular the fieldwork component allows the institute's research agenda to respond quickly to changes in development policy and practice.